1873 Biennial Report Volume 2
Insanity In Illinois
The 1873 Biennial Report report reveals that of Illinois 102 counties, Scott was 1 of 11 that reported 0 insane to the 1870 census. Further investigation and reports from physicians increase that number to 11 , a ratio of 1:957 for Scott County, while the ratio for the state was 1:890.
The 1870 census lists the residents on this day as Supervisor Martin Holden and family, 8 members in total, and 9 paupers, including 2 residents noted as ‘idiots’ and 1 as ‘blind’, and long time resident Francis Marion Wisdom. At this time ‘insanity’ and ‘idiocy’ were treated differently. The insane would have been eligible for treatment at The State Hospital in Jacksonville, or another hospital for the mentally ill. If a person was diagnosed with ‘idiocy’, they typically remained at the county poor farm. The belief at the time was that insanity was something that could be cured, while idiocy was a life long affliction.
The pauper listed below as 39 year old Francis Wisdom, is a thread that runs through-out the history of the poor farm, first appearing in the record in 1862, at 32, a brickmaker, suffering from epilepsy.
1870 Census
